The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Huskies not on same level as Gamecocks
Doug Bonjour’s Takeaways
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Regardless of what happened, Geno Auriemma thought UConn would come out of Monday’s game against top-ranked South Carolina a better team.
A 70-52 loss didn’t change that.
“I thought we came down here and we played the No. 1 team in the country and we battled them,” Auriemma said. “We just didn’t make the plays we needed to make.”
Then came this concession: “Maybe we’re just not good enough to make those plays,” he added. “I don’t know.”
The Huskies are still good (20-3), but maybe not Final Four good. They’ve lost three games by at least 15 points in a season for the first time since 1992-93, falling by 16 to Baylor and by 18 to Oregon.
South Carolina, Baylor and Oregon have separated themselves as the three best teams in the country. UConn isn’t on the same level, which is hard for many to swallow given the Huskies’ unprecedented success.
The Huskies have held a top-5 ranking for 253 consecutive weeks dating to February 2007. But barring a string of upsets, that streak’s about to end.
So where does that leave UConn? A little closer to
everyone else.
Here’s four more takeaways from UConn’s loss to the Gamecocks.
Freshman sensations: Dawn Staley is reaping the rewards of a dynamite recruiting class. South Carolina’s freshmen showed a maturity that UConn’s didn’t, and it made a significant difference.
Aliyah Boston, Zia Cooke and Bria Beal played older than their age, totaling nearly half (33) of the Gamecocks’ points. Boston, the former UConn target, was the most impressive of the trio, collecting her 10th double-double (13 points and 12 rebounds) of the season. Meanwhile, UConn’s Anna Makurat and Aubrey Griffin were both non-factors, combining for just two points on 1-of-8 shooting.
“There were times when their freshmen didn’t play like freshmen at all,” Auriemma said. “Both of our freshmen played like freshmen the entire game.”
Going to Plan B: South Carolina came in averaging 5.2 3-pointers per game, which ranked 234th in the country. Boston, the Gamecocks’ leading scorer, had yet to even attempt one.
But against UConn, South Carolina sank eight 3-pointers, reminding us that the best teams in the country have more than one way to win.
Night to forget: Christyn Williams’ struggles continued. Williams was an unsightly 1-for-11 from the field and is 7-for-34 against the last three ranked opponents (South Carolina, Oregon, Tennessee). She’s scored a total of 16 points in those games.
The Huskies need more — much more, from Williams — especially if they’d like to play into April. What’s next?: Forget being a No. 1 seed. With only six American Athletic Conference games remaining, the Huskies won’t get another chance to bolster their resume. They have two ranked wins (No. 13 DePaul and No. 25 Tennessee).
Assuming they run the table and are 29-3 with another AAC title, the Huskies will be looking at a No. 2 or maybe even a No. 3 seed. For what it’s worth, ESPN’s latest bracketology had them as a No. 2 in the Portland (Ore.) region, opposite Oregon.